Undesirable timeout for topics appearing as New?

[oogje]

When I keep up with a topic throughout the day, the "Go to first new post" button works as I'd expect. But if i don't visit for a 6 hours or so then the button takes me to the end of the topic. It's as if after some inactivity period the forums update my last visited time or reset it.

Is there something I can do so the forums permanently remember the last time I visited a topic - or remember for a month or a week? I checked my Control Panel - maybe I missed something?

Thanks.

brian

 

[devilot]

Hm, my suggestion would be to edit your User Options, and start using subscriptions.




Fiddle to figure out the type of notification you'd like or not.

Likewise, when you navigate to MR you can click on "UserCP" (right under the MR apple/? logo) and it will list your unread subscribed threads. Or you can go to "Quick Links" and click on "Subscribed Threads."

 

[oogje]

Thanks. But I don't want to subscribe to every thread, I just want to be able to read them from where I left off.

Can you tell me what the time limit is before the last-read time is forgotten?

Thanks.

brian

 

[devilot]

I think it times out after 15 minutes. Not sure though... see if someone else will weigh in.

 

[oogje]

I think it times out after 15 minutes. Not sure though... see if someone else will weigh in.

Thanks. I'm wondering if there's any downside for the users or the forum to make it more like a week, if not a month.

brian

 

[MacNut]

You want to freeze the forums from when you last left so when you return you can go back to when you stopped reading. I can see how that would be useful, but in reality the way this forum moves so fast I think it would leave you to far behind and won't be all that feasible of a feature. Maybe a bookmark system can be developed, it leaves a tag the last post you looked at.

 

[oogje]

You want to freeze the forums from when you last left so when you return you can go back to when you stopped reading. I can see how that would be useful, but in reality the way this forum moves so fast I think it would leave you to far behind and won't be all that feasible of a feature. Maybe a bookmark system can be developed, it leaves a tag the last post you looked at.

I believe the feature is built-in to vBulletin with the "View First Unread" or "v" icon link. But it seems in MacRumors' implementation the timeout for this link is set to a very short period. After the timeout period the link takes you to the last post rather than the first unread post.

As it is, after a short period when I enter a thread that I've been following I scroll through to visually find the last post I recall and continue reading from there. Thus if I reply I won't have intentionally overlooked something someone wrote. The "View First Unread" feature encourages that by making it convenient.

 

[xsedrinam]

oogje, your logon has the "remember me" checked too, right? I've wondered if it's not a cookies thing that's involved? Maybe I'm missing a point. Other than Tivo for vBulletin, I don't know what else to suggest.

 

[WildCowboy]

devilot is correct. After fifteen minutes without activity, the system assumes that you are no longer browsing the forums and makes you inactive. Any unread threads become marked as read when this happens. When you come back to the forums the next time, only posts/threads made since your last activity are considered new. So if you didn't get around to reading new stuff during your last session, that "bookmark" is now gone.

I honestly have no idea whether vBulletin has the capability to differentiate between your last activity time out period and the tracking of "unread" threads/posts.

But yes, it also bugs me. There are times when I only have a couple of minutes, so I don't check in here at the forums because I know I won't be able to make it through everything I need to check up on and I don't want to lose those placeholders.

 

[oogje]

Thank you all, for your help/comments. I think I understand the way it works now.


brian